What a Wonderful Wedding Day

Coming up on almost three weeks being married and I must say I am really enjoying having a husband so far. Dan is a great guy and I am so thankful for what we have come through to get to where we are. 

 I wanted to take some time to jot down some of my favorite memories from the wedding day! 

First of all...my bridal party was the best there ever was and everywhere we went people noticed. They took great care of me and brought such joy throughout the whole process. I would pick each one of them again if I had to do it all over. They were one of the biggest blessing on my day. 

One of the favorite memories I have of the wedding is the "First Look". This is where the photographer sets up a special moment before the ceremony for the groom to see his bride in her dress for the very first time. It was a special moment. Dan waited out front and turned his back while they brought me out in my dress. I started tearing up the second I saw him standing there. I walked up and then told him to turn around. We both cried when we saw each other and were grinning from ear to ear. And then the best part; in the background while all this was happening I could hear all my bridesmaids oohhing and ahhing as the peeked through the blinds. It was the best moment ever and i'm so glad we got in on camera. 

Another highlight for me was having my amazing friend Karen there to coordinate the ceremony. I do not know how Brides get through their wedding day without a coordinator. If you are not married yet I highly recommend having one on your wedding day. Even if you just have a good friend who is administratively gifted do it for you like I did.  Thank you Karen for helping everything be perfect!

Dan's favorite moment and one of mine as well was when Gabe and Alice walked down the aisle. My friend Kelly made a special sign for Gabe to carry that said "Here She Comes Daddy" that Dan did not know about before hand. So when he saw that, the tears came streaming. It was so fun to get to surprise him with that. 

The Reception was such a blast and I loved watching people have fun. My good friends John and Nicole tore up the dance floor song after song and watching them dancing together made me smile. I hope Dan and I can dance with each other like after many years of marriage. 

I love kids at weddings and I'm so thankful for all the kids that got to come run around and have fun. My two little cousins Amanda and Miranda came dressed in the most adorable purple dresses. Having them there is a sweet memory to me because I remember being their age at their moms wedding . Amanda got to catch the bouquet and Miranda was probably the best dancer at the whole wedding only to be matched by my friends Tiffany's little two year old Nora. When she got in the middle of the dance circle and started jumping around like she owned the place my heart burst with joy. It was the cutest thing I've seen in a very long time. 

There are a hundred other great moments to go with these ones and of course just being surrounded by all our family and friends was priceless. My mom was incredible and I could have never done any of it without her. My most favorite decoration of the whole day was the beautiful arch she decorated and chandelier hanging from the middle of it. Thank you Mom!

It could not have been a more perfect joyful day and I have all of my friends and family to thank for that. I am the luckiest bride there is!

Thoughts from Ethiopia

 We have come upon the one year anniversary of when I got the blessing of traveling to Ethiopia with a work team from Harvest Church.  I randomly stumbled upon some thoughts I wrote down shortly after returning. Thought I would share them with you:)

What did I take home from Ethiopia?

It has been hard to process all that happened in the ten short days we experienced Ethiopia. Coming home was a total mix of emotions. I cried on my front step for a while after arriving back. I sat and talked with God about the new parts of his heart I saw and what in the world to do next? When people ask me “how was your trip?” I have a hard time describing my experience. I just reply, “It was amazing!” and don’t know where to go from there.  The most common questions I have gotten upon on returning has been, “Did seeing all that poverty depress you?” or “Were you totally broken while you were there”? And strangely enough, my answer is no.

It was difficult at first when we arrived in Addis. The standard of living for some is something I am not accustomed to seeing.  It was difficult to have children regularly begging us for money. Some of the houses people live in are in worse shape than our flimsiest tool sheds. As I sat in one of the houses I thought, “I could never fall asleep here.” There is no Wal-Mart or Target for you household accommodations, but the streets are lined with vendors selling out of holes in the wall. All of this at first was weird and uncomfortable, until I started to step out into Addis and meet the people of the city. It was amazing how quickly the things that were visible faded away, and what was invisible became clear. The invisible, which is the hope, joy and love that lives in the people of Ethiopia, completely overshadowed any shabby structure or dirty street. I didn’t care if my coffee was ground by a re-bar found at the dump; I was being served by some of the loveliest ladies I have ever had the fortune of sitting with. Having nothing us Americans would think was worth a dime, they served us fabulous coffee roasted and ground by their own hands. We hardly knew each other, but the way they treated us revealed Jesus to me. The way they served in the midst of having nothing, reminded me of how a true servant acts, who gives no matter what the cost. Nothing could have stopped these people from making us coffee or using the water they had walked miles for to wash our dirty hands. It is not an option for them to think about loving their neighbor; they live for each other, not for themselves. I loved being around the poorest of the poor that lived in Ethiopia. It was not depressing, but inspiring. I can see why Jesus liked to hang out with them so much as well. Their eyes are never on themselves or the things that they have. They look at each other and up towards God the Father, who they rely on for everything. I got to take away the biggest gift I could have possibly gotten, being taught about Jesus by the people of Ethiopia.

God busts out of the box!

As I was driving down the road taking Gabriel to Awana the other night I began to pray. I have been feeling like such a screw up in the "things of God" department lately. There is so much I could be doing better, I have been far more in tune with the part of me which lives to please myself than the spirit within me which desires to please God.  My spirit and my flesh are at war every day and never have I been more aware of this unseen battle. (See Galatians 5:17)

As I was praying I was asking God if he could please redeem my failures and my stupid mistakes, if he could please make things right in the midst of all I do wrong. This miraculous talent is something only God possess by the way. As I was finishing my prayers I had an overwhelming sense come over my heart. I didn't actually hear the voice of God but it was as clear as if I did. I imagine when this phenomenon happens it is probably a combination of the holy spirit and God's whisper bringing my heart to an understanding.

The overwhelming sense that I got, if I can even describe it was, "Dawn my love is ferocious, it is relentless, it is does not quit on you, and it does not depend on you" My brain went "of course", and I instantly understood in that moment that God's love is not human, it is far more superior than that. As well as we try to love each other as people, even our best attempts can't compare to God's unchangeable love. The love that we see amongst each other goes through seasons of change, it is not always constant, not always the same, and it is HARD WORK!  Although it does happen, it is a rare thing to see a love that is bigger than any circumstance. No wonder I have such a hard time believing this kind of love exists. 

But God cannot be put into a box!

Once someone belongs to God, there is absolutely not a damn thing they could ever do to change his mind about them. I predict that if any of of you knew me the way that God does, if you knew my inner thought life and transgressions you would have quite a different opinion of me. However God's relentless love is not shaken by anything, he is the strongest love of all. It is unfathomable to me that He could love me this way, but I am trying to understand.

God please help me to truly believe that your love does not depend on me. If I could know that for sure in my heart every day I would be invincible to any trouble I might face. Thank you for saving your dear child. Thank you that I belong to you and there is nothing I could ever do to change that.

Your Daughter,
Dawn

 "If we are faithless, he will remain faithful"-2 Timothy 2:13

"Where can I go from you Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I got up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths , you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast"-Psalm 139:7-10

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus" Romans 8:38-39